1. Home
  2. RIP
  3. View Record
https://www.nationalacademies.org/trb/events

Telemedicine Adoption Before, During, and After COVID-19: The Role of Socioeconomic and Built Environment Variables

In this research, the research team focuses their investigation on the telemedicine adoption preferences of patients/consumers. This comprehensive approach contributes to advancing the existing body of knowledge in five distinct ways. First, the team uses rigorous multivariate econometric models that accommodate multiple sociodemographic and built environment (BE) variables at once rather than simple bivariate correlations of determinant factors with telemedicine adoption. Second, the framework is structured to discern the shifts in the effects of the factors affecting telemedicine adoption between the before- and after-COVID periods. This helps gain a deeper understanding of how socioeconomic and BE variables influenced telemedicine adoption before the pandemic and how the willingness of different segments of society to engage in telemedicine shifted as a result of the pandemic. Third, proposed multivariate model system recognizes that unobserved individual factors (such as technology savviness) that elevate telemedicine adoption before the pandemic may also affect adoption during the pandemic, and collectively influence an individual’s intention to use telemedicine in the post-pandemic period. Not accounting for such intra-individual correlation effects due to unobserved individual-level factors variables will, in general, provide biased estimates of the evolution pattern of telemedicine adoption over time. In this study, the longitudinal data comprises responses from the same individuals across three specific time periods, offering a unique advantage in quantifying the causal effect of the pandemic on telemedicine use. Fourth, the study explores the reasons for using or not using telemedicine in the after-COVID period from the patient’s viewpoint. The team conducts a consumer-focused analysis that provides unique insights into the motivations, preferences, and concerns of different patient segments regarding telemedicine. Specifically, in the after-COVID period, for telemedicine adopters, the team jointly models the reasons for adoption using multivariate binary probit models. Similarly, in the after-COVID period, for non-adopters, the team uses multivariate binary probit models to jointly analyze cited reasons for not adopting telehealth. This can inform healthcare providers, policymakers, and other stakeholders seeking to sustain telemedicine adoption post-COVID. Fifth, the study is the first that the team is aware of in the travel behavior literature that focuses on telemedicine adoption. Earlier studies related to virtual participations have investigated tele-adoption in the context of work, grocery shopping, and non-grocery shopping, but have not considered telemedicine adoption. However, telemedicine adoption can also have transportation ramifications, just as virtual participation in other types of activities can (including individuals potentially appropriating the freed-up time for pursuing other activities). In this regard, the team hopes that their study will open up additional research in studying the travel implications of tele-participation in medical-related activities. This should be of particular interest in the context of medical accessibility for the increasingly aging population of many countries, including the United States.

Language

  • English

Project

  • Status: Completed
  • Funding: $150,000.00
  • Contract Numbers:

    69A3552344815

    69A3552348320

  • Sponsor Organizations:

    Office of the Assistant Secretary for Research and Technology

    University Transportation Centers Program
    Department of Transportation
    Washington, DC  United States  20590
  • Managing Organizations:

    Center for Understanding Future of Travel Behavior and Demand

    University of Texas
    Austin, TX  United States 
  • Project Managers:

    Bhat, Chandra

  • Performing Organizations:

    University of Texas at Austin

    Austin, TX  United States  78712
  • Principal Investigators:

    Bhat, Chandra

  • Start Date: 20230901
  • Expected Completion Date: 20240531
  • Actual Completion Date: 20240531
  • USDOT Program: University Transportation Centers Program

Subject/Index Terms

Filing Info

  • Accession Number: 01948179
  • Record Type: Research project
  • Source Agency: Center for Understanding Future of Travel Behavior and Demand
  • Contract Numbers: 69A3552344815, 69A3552348320
  • Files: UTC, RIP
  • Created Date: Mar 8 2025 11:26AM